Gaming & Culture —

The toy that roared: Ars reviews the DSi

Nintendo has launched a new entry into the Nintendo DS line, with two cameras …

DSiWare Reviews

Let's take a look at some of the games available right now on DSiWare. The opening-day game collection is rather lukewarm, but Nintendo will begin offering new games every week, so there will likely be at least a few games to get excited about by the time you read this on Monday. Here's what's available for launch.

WarioWare: Snapped

WarioWare: Snapped

The standard variety of minigames, with the standard craziness. We know the formula, although for $5 this one is hard to pass up. You calibrate the camera so you can use your head and hand motions to control the games, and then at the end of your round the game puts together a funny little video of your motions while you were playing.

This is great for a laugh or to show off what the DSi can do, although I will warn you that unless the room you're playing in is very well-lit you can expect some problems with the camera picking up your movements. You'll also need to put the hardware down on a solid surface and step away to play, making this worthless on commutes or anytime you'd actually like a portable game.

Still, totally worth the money just for the zaniness.

Verdict: Buy

Art Style: Aquia

This is a tough game to explain in words. There is a column of different-colored blocks that goes vertically through both screens, and you must match three of the same-colored blocks by pushing them to the right or the left using a floating block, thus creating different patterns. Are you still with me?

The soundtrack is happily filled with boops and beeps, and the more blocks you match, the faster a diver goes to the bottom of the screen, racing his air supply. It may take a while to click—I was completely lost for the first fifteen minutes or so—but once you "get it" this is going to be one addictive puzzler.

I expected WarioWare: Snapped to be the game everyone talked about at launch, but Aquia was a very happy surprise. 500 points or $5, and worth the cost.

Verdict: Buy

Bird & Beans

This is a holdover from the GBA WarioWare title, and it's kind of a stretch to say it's worth even $2. You're a little birdie, and you have to stretch your tongue to catch falling... beans, I guess. That's it. The higher up you grab the fruit, the more points you get.

I was bored nearly instantly, but my wife said it's good for people who don't play many video games. (This isn't exactly a ringing endorsement when you think about it.) It might be less than a cup of coffee, but I would have preferred the coffee.

Verdict: Skip

So who is the DSi for?

Since getting the DSi last Friday, I've really become enamored with the system, but it isn't without its shortcomings. The camera is fun, but so far only for a limited time. The music and sound-recording functions seem more toy-like than anything you'll want to listen to while actually doing anything. It's also worth pointing out that with the larger screen, downloading games online, and all the other goodies, the battery life takes quite the hit. The DS Lite seemed to have a nearly unlimited battery. It at least it lasted long enough that you didn't have to worry about long flights—if only we could say the same things for our laptops and iPhones. But on the DSi, six to nine hours seems to be standard. I've already had to give it a few charges, and the lower battery performance is apparent very quickly.

So, what is there to like?

Mostly the promise of the thing. This is an update to the DS Lite, and the ability to download games and applications directly to the system is what you should be interested in. Frankly, it works great, although the games available now are more tech-demo-ish than anything else. In the future, though, expect the DSiWare library to grow more and more impressive, wearing down the resolve of even the most budget-conscious gamer.

But that's the future. For now, there is no reason to run out and trade in your old hardware, unless you're really in the mood for something new and shiny. And I actually wouldn't blame you if you were pulled in by the new look and feel. But most people will want to sit back and wait for a good library of games to build up for the hardware.

This is a low-key launch, and every store I called told me I should be able to walk in and buy the hardware on launch day. So the DSi probably won't be a sell-out hit at first, but this could turn into a slow burn; one of those evergreen products that Nintendo seems to release with so little effort.

In all, the possibilities are there, but the killer app for the hardware doesn't yet exist. Still, if you have $170 burning a hole in your pocket, and you like having new games available whenever you can grab a WiFi signal, this is a solid purchase. I'm already excited to find out what DSiWare games will be available on Monday.

The Good

Solid hardware, feels thinner and more serious in your hand

Larger, clearer screen

SDHC support out of the box, making storage a non-issue

DSiWare service as easy to use as the Virtual Console and WiiWare

$10 worth of free games, and a free Web browser available now

Listen to your music, take audio notes

Two cameras gives you some neat image-editing options, as well as fun possibilities for game play

The Bad

Shorter battery life

Only supports AAC files for music

Buying games online isn't nearly as zippy as it could be

Image-editing features and music effects little more than a briefly-entertaining toy

No support for video

Can't load games off SDHC cards

The Ugly

Trying to figure out what will be cut/added to the Nintendo DSi Lite

Verdict: If this is your first DS, why not pay a little more for the spiffy new hardware? If you have a DS Lite, waiting until DSiWare is filled with games you want to play is your best bet.